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I have spent a lot of time the past few months thinking about grief and what the Bible has to say about it. Today I just want to share a few things that I have learned.

1. Jesus wept. Jesus saw the devastation that the death of his friend, Lazarus’ caused, and He, the Almighty in human skin, wept. He saw the pain of His friends, but He also felt the loss. He knew, so much better than any of us could ever know, that He would be forever with Lazarus in Heaven, and yet He wept. Not shed a tear, not cried, but wept. Strong’s concordance gives a synonym of wept as overflowing. The tears would not stop, and his grief was heavy. What a picture of our Lord. He understands when our tears overflow.
2. “Curse God and die,” said Job’s wife. We do not even know her name, yet we can learn so much from her. So many have preached about her with comments alluding to the fact that part of the pain that Job had to go through was dealing with his wife. I think we can look at this passage another way. Job’s wife lost the same children that Job did. She lost the same cattle and servants and security that Job had. She is now watching her husband writhe in pain.  Could it be possible that she was fearful Job was going to die next? She is a woman in the deepest gut wrenching grief one can imagine. I think we can be so unkind to her. Notice that God does not condemn her for her words. She is not as Lot’s wife, turned into salt, or punished in any other way from what scripture tells us.  Job does not say his wife is foolish, he says she is speaking as a foolish woman. This shows it is out of character for her, that she does not usually speak that way. Her grief is not dismissed by God or by Job. God allows us to see that grief does not look the same on every person.
3. In Psalm 22, David cried out, “My God, my God, why have you forsaken me? Why are you so far from saving me, so far from the words of my groaning? Oh my God, I cry out by day but you do not answer, by night, and am not silent.”  King David, the friend of God, the boy who killed Goliath, the man after God’s own heart, grieved and begged God for answers, and struggled when there were none.

Friend, if you are feeling shattered today, you are not alone. Jesus, Job’s wife, and King David have walked this road where there is no light ahead and the pieces are so broken it does not seem as if there is any way to put them back together again.  God shared these stories with us  so that we would know God understands grief and He grieves with us. He is a God who is in the deep trenches of pain with us and as Psalm 34:18 says,

“The LORD is close to the brokenhearted and saves those who are crushed in spirit.”  Know today He is right there next to you in the pain, and He will never leave.

“Lord, when our hearts are shattered and nothing makes sense, please give us strength to take the next breath. We love You.”

For His Glory

Terrie Tollerson
TRBC Women’s Life